


A Helping Hand

by MoonlightBreeze



Series: Whumptober 2020 [12]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec Lightwood Deserves Nice Things, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Angst with a Happy Ending, Coming of Age, Crying, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Fluff, First Period, Friendship, Gen, Gender or Sex Swap, Light Angst, Pads, Periods, Supportive Magnus Bane, Whumptober 2020, no beta we die like men, platonic teacher student relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:09:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26994208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonlightBreeze/pseuds/MoonlightBreeze
Summary: Alec gets her first period in class, but Magnus is there to help her.Whumptober 2020 prompt fic - alt. prompt, comfortHappy ending!
Relationships: Magnus Bane & Alec Lightwood
Series: Whumptober 2020 [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1950094
Kudos: 20





	A Helping Hand

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys! This fic is written for the Whumptober alternate prompt: comfort. It might be the fluffiest thing I've written this Whumptober and I can honestly say I have no idea where this idea came from. I've never had a desire to read or write gender swap before, but here we are. 
> 
> Just so you're definitely aware, Magnus and Alec are both female in this fic and Magnus is a teacher while Alec is a student. They have a platonic relationship. There is NO slash in this fic. 
> 
> I really hope you like this!! Kudos make my day and comments validate my existence, so please feel free to leave those, if you want :) And, as always, I hope you have a wonderful day/night!
> 
> ~ Em

Alec fled from the classroom, clutching her purse like a lifeline. The women’s bathroom was thankfully empty, and she sprinted into one of the stalls, the door clanging shut behind her. Tears pricked the backs of her eyelids and she clutched the edges of her t-shirt anxiously. Fuck, she couldn’t believeshe’d gotten her first period _in class_ without a pad. _God_. What would people say? She fisted the fabric of her t-shirt in her hands. They would call her disgusting, dirty, maybe even a few other things too vulgar for her to think about for long. 

With shaking hands, she pressed the #1 on her speed dial, tapping anxiously against her leg as she waited for Magnus to answer. The dark stain on her pants was clearly visible even in the dim lighting of the bathroom stall, and she bit her lip hard, trying not to cry. This was normal, this was womanhood, this happened to everyone. But it was still so fucking _humiliating_ and scary and she didn’t know what to do. 

“Alec?” Magnus’s staticky voice pierced through the line. “Are you okay?”

“F-Fine,” Alec whimpered, “but I need help.”

“Where are you, Alexander?”

“Girls’ bathroom near the history classroom,” Alec said, tightening her hand around the cellphone. 

“I’ll be there in a second,” Magnus promised. “I’m subbing for Fisher this hour.” With that, Magnus hung up and Alec was back to hunkering over the toilet in her bloodstained jeans. She hoped Magnus would hurry. 

To her relief, not two seconds later, the bathroom door swung open and Alec caught sight of Magnus’s dark slacks through the crack in the stall door. She breathed a sigh of relief. As embarrassing as it was, she knew Magnus would be the one person to help and not ridicule her for what had happened. 

“Alexander? Are you okay?” Alec’s drama teacher’s voice was dripping with concern, and Alec let a little sob escape her lips. 

“No,” Alec cried. “No, Mags, I’m not!”

“What happened?” Her voice was comforting and free of judgement, and it made Alec feel like she was in a safe enough space to talk about what had happened. Still, her cheeks flamed bright red as she tried to explain. 

“My - My period,” Alec mumbled. “I got my period.”

“Oh, Alec.” Magnus’s voice was heavy with sympathy. “In class?”

“Y-Yeah.”

“Poor girl,” Magnus muttered. Alec heard her approach the door, and she clutched her purse tighter. Was Magnus going to make fun of her? Tell her she should have been prepared? 

Instead, Magnus knocked on the door and said, “Can I come in? Are you decent?”

Despite the situation, her teacher’s antics drew a small smile out of Alec. “Yeah.”

Magnus turned the knob and entered the stall, immediately opening her arms to Alec. Alec darted forward to accept the hug and embraced her teacher hard. Magnus was the only adult she really trusted - her mother had never bothered to teach her about any of this - and it was the biggest sort of relief to be confronted with undeniable proof that Magnus wasn’t repulsed or grossed out by her and what had happened. 

After a few more seconds of their tight embrace, Magnus pulled away, wiping the tears from Alec’s eyes with a gentle touch and a soft smile. “Come on, none of that,” Magnus said, giving Alec’s shoulders a supportive squeeze. “Do you have a pad in there?” She gestured to Alec’s purse, and Alec took a deep breath, nodding. 

“Yeah,” she said, fingering her purse’s clasp, “b-but I don’t know how to use it.” 

“That’s okay,” Magnus reassured her. “I can teach you. But first, why don’t we find you a change of clothes?”

Alec’s eyes widened. “Walk down the hall like this?!”

“You can tie my jacket around your waist,” Magnus offered, shedding her sparkly jacket and offering it to Alec. 

“Thanks,” Alec said shyly, taking the offered garment and tying it around her waist like Magnus had indicated. She looked up at her teacher anxiously. “Will I have to go to the nurse’s office?” The idea of facing the school nurse, notorious for serving her patients a side of judgment along with a ‘you’re fine, go back to class’, was not at all helping Alec’s frayed nerves. 

“No,” Magnus answered, taking her favourite student’s hand and leading them out of the bathroom. “I know it can feel a little embarrassing to talk to someone about this. I’ll ask for a change of clothes and bring them out to you.”

Alec nodded, breathing a sigh of relief at Magnus’s words. 

Magnus tweaked her nose in a gesture that made Alec smile, and said, “I’m really proud of you for coming to me when you needed help, by the way.” 

Alec beamed. She didn’t know what to say to that, but the teacher’s pride meant more to her than the opinion of any other adult in her life. Magnus was different; she seemed to understand Alec in a way that no one else did, and Alec often found herself wishing on stars at night that Magnus was her mother instead of her actual mother. 

If Magnus knew about the wishes, Alec would like to think she would tell her that they didn’t have to be blood-related to be family. 

They reached the nurse’s office quickly, and Alec waited outside while Magnus went in to talk to the nurse. Her hands fluttered anxiously by her sides. Being out in the hallway made her feel exposed and vulnerable; even though she knew the jacket covered all of the damage, she still couldn’t help but feel that someone would be waiting just around the corner to tease and poke fun at her for not knowing what to do. She swallowed hard and blinked back the tears that threatened at that thought. 

Magnus exited the nurse’s office, carrying a little Walmart bag of items. She smiled warmly at Alec and, without even a little bit of hesitation, wiped away the remnants of tears in her eyes. Alec nearly choked on a sob at that. God, how had she managed to find and befriend the nicest teacher possible? 

“Come on,” Magnus said, gesturing for Alec to follow her. “Let’s get you fixed up.” With that, she led Alec back to the girls’ bathroom, swinging the Walmart bag in front of them cheerfully. Alec appreciated her positivity when she felt so negative, and she could tell that Magnus knew exactly what to do to help her, which was as comforting a thought as she could ask for. 

“Okay, first things first,” Magnus said when they were back inside the bathroom again. “Let me teach you how to use a pad.” Alec nodded eagerly. She wasn’t keen to experience another spectacle like the one she’d just fled from anytime soon. 

“First step, pull right here and peel this all the way back,” Magnus instructed Alec, showing her how to unwrap the pad and remove the plastic covering the bottom of it. “This is the part that you stick on your underwear. Second step, unfold it completely and take the plastic pieces off.” She held the pad out in front of her to demonstrate and removed the little strips of plastic that covered the pad’s wings. “Final step, place it on the bottom of your underwear like so.” She mimed attaching the pad to a pair of panties and folding the wings underneath the middle part. “Understand?”

Alec nodded and gave Magnus a genuine smile. “Yeah.”

“Great!” Magnus dug around in the Walmart sack and procured a pair of dark jeans for Alec and another pad for her to try herself. “Your turn.” She gestured Alec towards the stall and said, “Don’t be embarrassed to ask questions if you’re confused!” 

“I won’t,” Alec promised. She took the pants and the pad from Magnus, turning to enter the stall. She paused, her hand on the clasp. “I - thank you,” she breathed. “Seriously, I don’t know how to thank you.”

Magnus’s eyes seemed to sparkle with happiness in the dim lighting of the bathroom. “No need to thank me, kiddo. It’s what I’m here for.” 

With that, Alec retreated into the bathroom stall, confident in herself and her ability to overcome what had happened with the help of her teacher, friend, and closest confidante by her side. 

**Author's Note:**

> [Stalk me on Tumblr](http://moonlight-breeze-44.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Prompts are open, but very slow! Thanks for your patience! <3
> 
> If you love Shadowhunters, chaos, and gaining new friends (or any combination of the three), I invite you to [join the Discord server](https://discord.gg/82pvdE39fD) I run with my friends! We're a multifandom server that caters to Shadowhunters, Supernatural, Marvel, and more. We welcome everyone, and we'd love to have you! <3


End file.
